Lock Back Folding Knife, Damascus with Stag Antler Handle

A lock back folder turns on a pivot pin at the front of the handle, and a steel bar in the spine drops into a notch in the blade to hold it open. This one is a 3.75 inch clip point blade in hand forged Damascus, 5 inches closed and 8.75 inches open, with brass bolsters, stag antler scales and a hand tooled leather slip pouch. It suits buyers who want a traditional pocket knife.

Specification

The blade

The steel is Damascus, pattern welded over a high carbon core and etched so the ladder layers run dark and light. The bevel is mirror bright against the etched flat. The shape is a clip point, so the spine drops away toward the front and leaves a fine tip for picking at a knot. Carbon sits under the pattern, so the blade darkens with use and it rusts if it is put away wet.

How it opens and closes

You open it with two hands. Catch the nail nick, the small crescent cut in the flat of the blade, with a thumbnail and swing the blade out. As it comes round, the steel bar in the spine drops into a notch in the back of the blade. To close it, press the cut out partway along the spine to lift the bar clear, then fold the blade back in. There is no stud and no clip.

The handle

The scales are natural stag antler in pale cream and tan, with the rough knobbly bark left on rather than sanded flat. That texture is much of why people choose stag, and it gives the hand grip. Polished brass bolsters cap both ends and hold the pins. Antler is natural, so color and ridge shift from piece to piece.

What it is for

This is an everyday cutting knife. It opens boxes and mail, cuts twine and tape, trims a loose thread, slices an apple at lunch and takes light work around a yard or a workshop. It is not a pry bar, so leave prying to the tools made for it.

The leather pouch

The pouch is a flat sleeve the closed knife drops into, cut from vegetable tanned leather with a snap strap over the mouth and cream hand stitching down both sides. The face is hand tooled with an oak leaf and acorn pattern inside a stamped border, cut and shaded by hand. Most sellers in this category send a plain pouch.

Who it suits

People buy this one for the antler as much as for the blade. It is a traditional pattern with a lock, it sits in a coat pocket at 5 inches closed, and it makes a good gift.

• Buyers who want a traditional folder
• Collectors of Damascus patterns
• Anyone who prefers a natural handle

What comes in the box

• The folding knife
• The leather slip pouch
• A care card
• Engraving quote

Every piece is different

Each blade is forged, ground, heat treated and sharpened by hand, so runs stay small. The ladder pattern never repeats and no two pieces of antler match, so yours will differ from the photographs.

Looking after it

Wipe the blade dry after use and never put it away wet. Damascus darkens with use, and that gray patina is normal and protects the steel. A drop of light oil in the pivot keeps the action smooth. Never a dishwasher, and sharpen on a stone following the existing bevel. More is on our knife care and sharpening page.

Put a name on it

Laser engraving is 20 dollars per piece and you add it on this page. Around 30 characters fits on the blade or a bolster. Clean line art engraves cleanly, photographs do not. We send a proof image before the laser runs and it adds 3 to 5 business days. See the engraving page.

Questions buyers ask

What is a lock back? A steel bar down the spine drops into a notch in the blade when it opens. Press the cut out in the spine to close it.

What is a nail nick? It is the small crescent cut in the blade that you catch with a thumbnail to open it.

Can it be opened with one hand? No. It has a nail nick and no thumb stud, so it takes two hands.

Is it legal to carry? Knife carry laws differ by state, city and country, so check the rules where you live before you carry it. We cannot advise on that.

Will Damascus rust? It can, since carbon steel sits under the pattern. Dry it after use and oil it lightly.

Is it spring assisted or automatic? No. It opens by hand.

For the same lock back in wood see the Damascus folding pocket knife in rosewood, and for another natural handle the Damascus folding knife in buffalo horn. More is in folding knives, Damascus steel and stag horn knives.